LOCAL rider Emily Brooks recorded her biggest win to date, when landing the Connolly’s Red Mills EI115 at the George Mernagh Tattersalls Horse Trials last Sunday on her mother Christine’s Irish Sport Horse mare Ardagh Mayday.

Delighted with her Michael Moore-awarded dressage score (33.2), Brooks then put in one of the fastest cross-country rounds (11.6 penalties) before show jumping clear for a total of 44.8 on the 10-year-old OBOS Quality 004 bay, who was bred by Tom Whyte out of Ardagh Ruby (by Puissance).

Caitlin Woods was easily the quickest across the country (4.4) with her father Michael’s Greygrove Delight, but the seven-year-old ISH gelding then lowered three show jumping fences for a second-place completion score of 50.9.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to have won!” exclaimed 20-year-old Brooks, who is studying Business with Sport Science at Maynooth. “College is about 25 minutes from home, so I usually have plenty of time to ride the mare and a home-bred five-year-old who I hope to event next year. Sarah Ennis coaches me on the flat, I have recently started show jumping with Tom Walsh and Sally Corscadden has been my cross-country coach for as long as I can remember.

“I thought the track here was quite technical and everything came up very quickly. They made great use of the mounds and terrain.

“I was delighted to win at Tatts, as I used to come here every year for the Ward Union Pony Club camp.

“We may do the combined training at Lisgarvan, but then it’s on to Ballindenisk for the 3* long. We’ll do more 3*s next year, when I hope to be selected for the European Young Riders squad.”

Brooks also paid thanks to her parents for all their support.

Ciara O’Connor very nearly beat the cross-country clock (1.6 penalties), when seeing off 10 rivals in the Overlander EI110 (Open) on her aunt Sharon’s seven-year-old home-bred ISH mare Ashwood Rio (Dignified van’t Zorgvliet - Pikeur, by Ramiro B), who completed on 29.4. Michael Ryan brought up five horses from Co Cork and here, with 12.4 cross-country time penalties, finished second on Jessica O’Driscoll’s Lux Dam Good (34.7).

Elizabeth Power recorded her first win in a year when jumping a double clear inside the time in the 22-runner Belline Equestrian EI110 on Richard Oliver’s seven-year-old Hanoverian gelding Hickstead Junior (24.5).

The early leaders after dressage, Amanda Goldsbury on Alltogher Cooley (20.8) and Lesley Jones with Quality Choice (21.3) had a fence down apiece show jumping.

The former then picked up six time penalties on the final leg to drop to second, while the addition of 7.2 penalties saw Jones slip to fourth.